Lore probe expands

Published 8:00 pm, Wednesday, June 9, 2010

NORWALK

By DANIELLE CAPALBO

Hour Staff Writer

An alleged phony autism therapist in custody for larceny and fraud may have scammed more Connecticut districts than previously reported, reaping upward of half a million dollars through misrepresented services.

Facing charges in Norwalk and Weston, Stacy Lore, 34, also allegedly forged credentials to work with students in Stamford, Bridgeport and Region 15, according to a joint investigation by the attorney general's office and local police.

The investigation revealed that schools and families paid Lore approximately $635,000 between 2005 and 2008.

Region 15 Superintendent Frank Sippy denied that Lore worked for his district but would not elaborate.

Sarah Arnold, a spokesman for the Stamford Board of Education, said the BOE never contracted Lore but was legally obligated to foot the bill when a district parent hired Lore privately in 2007.

A spokesman for Bridgeport Public Schools could not be reached for comment.

Attorney General Richard Blumenthal launched his civil investigation more than a year ago to parallel ongoing criminal investigations throughout Fairfield County.

One such investigation came to a head Tuesday when Weston Police Detective Carl Filsinger arrested Lore for allegedly scamming the town's school board out of $300,350. She entered no plea at her arraignment.

Norwalk Police arrested Lore three months ago on charges of larceny, fraud and criminal impersonation. She billed Norwalk Public Schools and parents about $200,000 and will appear at Stamford Superior Court this morning regarding that case.

Her bond for charges in both districts amounts to $150,000.

According to the arrest warrant affidavit prepared by Filsinger, Weston Public Schools may have been the first in the state to hire Lore, who worked under the auspices of her now-defunct company, Spectrum Kids, LLC, to oversee the administration of specialized behavior therapy.

Norwalk Public Schools hired Lore about two years later, in 2007.

In all documented cases, Lore claimed to be a board-certified behavior analyst with a number of advanced degrees, though subsequent investigations revealed she held only a G.E.D.

According to court documents, an unidentified parent told Weston Police that she found an online advertisement for Lore's company in 2005 and personally interviewed Lore before recommending her to the district. Lore was hired after an interview with Janet Rosenbaum, then the director of pupil personnel services for Weston Public Schools.

According to the affidavit, Lore presented forged documents and credentials when she applied.

The affidavit indicates that school officials eventually grew concerned about Lore's apparent lack of professionalism based on the parent's complaints that Lore missed almost nine weeks of scheduled therapy in a year.

Another unidentified parent told Weston Police that Lore worked with her child and would "never show up for scheduled meetings and appointments," producing "one excuse after another."

The parent said Lore's services were provided through the school board.

"I am totally shocked by the lack of professionalism on the part of you and your staff in regard to the child," Rosenbaum told Lore prior to her dismissal. "This, what appears to be a planned failure to meet the defined needs of a student, is a first in my 38 years as a special education."